1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a cyclone separator for separating oil from aerosols in an internal combustion engine. The cyclone separator is connected between an air vent, a suction conduit, and an oil sump of the internal combustion engine.
2. The Prior Art
Cyclone separators are known from DE-PS 31 28 470 in which an air intake pipe is tangentially-mounted to a ring-shaped separation chamber. The chamber is bordered by a cylindrical inner surface of the cyclone housing and a cylindrical air exhaust pipe extending into the separation chamber. Aerosols flow within the separation chamber along a circular path.
The prior art separator has several drawbacks. Aerosols entering the top portion of the cyclone separator may circulate several times before being exhausted from the separator. Because of the hollow cylindrical configuration of the separation chamber, the fluid flow rate and centrifugal forces acting on the oil particles remains constant. As a result, very fine oil particles are not separated out of the mixture. The purpose of the invention is to increase the efficiency of the cyclone separator.